The American Dream - 859 Words

The concept of the ‘American Dream’ has changed dramatically over the past couple decades. Originally, the ideal American Dream consisted of marriage, children, a stable job with a high enough income to save and invest, and buying a house for the family. Subsequent of the Great Recession, buying a house is not as desirable or even feasible for the millennial generation. Millennials are interested in a different American Dream, focused on receiving an education and making enough money to pay the bills. There are multiple factors that drive Millennials away from homeownership, including difficulty obtaining a mortgage loan, establishing credit, permanency, and securing a down payment. A large contributor to the decrease in homeownership†¦show more content†¦Because of this, more and more Americans are renting in lieu of purchasing a home. Even though the younger generation isn’t buying homes, older generations and even Millennials with more stable finances have the opportunity to step in and purchase homes in order to turn around and rent them out. The rent charged is more than the mortgage, so the owner gets their house paid for while earning a profit and the renter can enjoy the pros of living in a house without the cons of purchasing it themselves. Additionally, due to the imbalance between the cost of living and minimum wage, Millennials are driven to adopt the trend of teaming up and renting a house with multiple roommates in order to save money. This further decreases the populace of both homebuyers and persons renting individual homes. While many Millennials are taking this route in terms of houses, even more Millennials are not even elect the housing option but rather move into apartments or townhomes for the purpose of saving money. Returning to the inconsistency between a living wage and what Millennials are bringing in on average, Millennials have become accustomed to the lifestyle of temporary commodities. We don’t like committing to anything from our relationships to our jobs; Millennials will work three part-time jobs before they settle in a nine-to-five full-time career path. Permanency is not a welcomed idea in our lives, and buying a house is the biggest financial commitment one can make.Show MoreRelatedImmigrants And The American Dream1362 Words   |  6 PagesImmigrants and the American Dream In the article â€Å"The American Dream†, by James Truslow Adams in The Sundance Reader book, he stated that the American dream is that dream of a land in which life should be better and richer and fuller for everyone, with opportunity for each according to ability or achievement. 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